To Be Truly Effective in Life . . .

Forrest Landry has a wide-ranging output of brilliance to offer the world, from large scale software systems design employed by various agencies of government, to engineering and master woodworking. But perhaps his most compelling contribution is his insights in metaphysics, with works such as An Immanent Metaphysics and Tiny Book Of Essential Wisdom. In this piece, Forrest examines the topic of effectiveness. Allow yourself a clean mental slate with regards to what effectiveness means to you, and allow Forrest to define the word in a perhaps more thoughtful framework than you've considered before.

To be truly effective in life, one needs to be able:

To desire clarity, rather than just simplicity.
To value diversity, rather than just to value solidarity.
To desire choice, rather than just comfort or security.
To focus on the future and the moment,
rather than just on the past.
To have vision, rather than to have only sight.
To hear as well as to see.
To deeply feel, as well as to quickly think.
To synthesize, rather than to merely analyze.
To focus awareness on one's loves,
rather than on one's fears and anger.
To focus on spirit, rather than on just matter.
To focus on mind, rather than on just body.
To focus on quality (qualia),
rather than on just quantity (quanta).
To focus on similarity, rather than on just difference.
To focus on context, rather than on just content.
To focus on that which is organic,
rather than that which is mechanistic.
To focus on meaning (inner values)
rather than on just purpose or just (monetary) value.
To focus on possibility, rather than on just actuality.
To focus on creation,
rather than on just that which already exists.
To focus on expression, rather than on just perception.
To focus on communication, rather than on just information.
To focus on the spiritual, rather than on just the physical.
To focus on the infinite, rather than on just the measurable.
To focus on the small, rather than on just the large.
To focus on depth, rather than on just speed.
To focus on creativity, rather than on just control.
To focus on continuity, rather than on just symmetry.
To focus on the beautiful and inspirational,
rather than that which is just practical.
To focus on that which is within,
rather than on that which is without.
To focus on inner strength, rather than on external power.
To focus on how one already has freedoms,
rather than on what are one's (seeming) limitations.
To focus on the ways something is true,
rather than on just the ways something is false.
To focus on cooperation (peace),
rather than on just competition (war).
To focus on the sacred, rather than on just the mundane.
To focus on what is already right,
rather than on what could go wrong.
To focus on the subjective, rather than on just the objective.
To focus on the myths, rather than on just the facts.
To focus on the unknowable, rather than on just the known.
To focus on soundness, rather than on just validity.
To focus on environment, rather than on just self.
To focus on desire, rather than on just want or need.
To focus on health, rather than on just wealth.
To focus on attaining joy, rather than on just avoiding pain.